1. Macro and trade environment: cost inflation and rising trade protectionism
The current global steel market is caught in a deadlock of "cost inflation and demand suppression". The geopolitical situation in the Middle East has pushed up logistics and raw material costs, while trade protectionism is continuously escalating. The European Union has raised steel import tariffs to 50%, and Brazil, the United States, South Korea, and other countries have also recently launched anti-dumping investigations against China or other countries, making the international trade environment increasingly severe.
2. Europe and the United States are accelerating their transition towards "green steel"
Facing environmental protection pressures, steel enterprises in Europe and the United States are actively promoting low-carbon transformation. ThyssenKrupp of Germany is expected to conduct a trial run of its hydrogen-based direct reduction iron plant in the third quarter; Stelco of Canada and the United States Steel Corporation have also invested heavily in building electric arc furnaces and low-carbon production facilities to cope with the increasingly urgent environmental compliance challenges.
3. Asian market: Demand surges in Central Asia, while production in Ukraine plummets
Driven by large-scale infrastructure projects such as the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, steel demand in Central Asia has experienced explosive growth, becoming an emerging blue ocean for China's exports. Conversely, due to damaged railway facilities in Ukraine, crude steel production plummeted by 45% year-on-year in April, which may directly affect the stability of long steel product supply in the European market.
4. Obvious differentiation in regional supply and demand
There are significant differences in performance across regions: Southeast Asia is expected to continue experiencing demand growth in 2026, but faces energy risks; Japan's JFE Steel announced business restructuring due to declining domestic demand; while Brazilian steel companies benefited from the recovery of infrastructure, achieving significant net profit growth in the first quarter.
Post time: Jun-30-2026